Seaweed is healthy and delicious, and it is pretty simple to make your own wakame seaweed salad. With a soy, sesame and chili dressing the crunchy seaweed is a delicious appetizer or snack. Wakame salad is usually made from reconstituted dried wakame, but when I saw fresh salted wakame, I decided to try that to compare. The verdict is not surprising — the fresh wakame has a nicer texture and more complex flavor. But both are delicious. Here’s how to make your own…

Ingredients

For 2 servings

100 grams fresh salted wakame seaweed, or 20 grams (.7 oz) dried

For the dressing

3 Tbsp rice vinegar

3 Tbsp Japanese soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp chili oil

1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds

Preparation

The salted seaweed should be soaked for 2 minutes in cold water to remove the excess salt. The soaking time of the salted wakame seems to be quite critical. When soaked too short, it is still too salty. When soaked for too long, the flavor weakens.

Drain it after 2 minutes…

…and chop it.

When using dried wakame instead, cover with hot water.

Allow to soak for 5 minutes.

Drain.

The dried wakame is on the left, the salted on the right. I wonder if the salt has muted the color, or if the dried wakame has been artificially colored?

Combine the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, and chili oil in a bowl and whisk until the sugar has dissolved.

Add the dressing to the wakame. Add the sesame seeds as well.

Toss to mix. Allow the flavors to blend for at least an hour before serving.

Flashback

Butter and coconut poached lobster with cous  cous and mushrooms, what’s not to love?! I have fond memories of this dish, because it was cooked for the visit of Conor and ‘the Wife’. Can’t believe it’s over two years ago already.